After challenging for the title for the past couple of seasons, it was significant to hear Hugo Lloris contemplate looking over Tottenham Hotspur’s shoulder more than in front of them at the end of a derby defeat. “Oh, before we think about [the leaders] Man City it’s important to stay in the top four. This is the main target for our team,” he said. “We heard from outside that Tottenham play for the title, blah, blah, blah. The most important thing is to stay consistent in the league.” The difficulty imposing themselves on the most challenging away fixtures remains a sticking point. Having lost at Old Trafford and Arsenal in recent weeks, next month they visit the Premier League’s pace setters at the Etihad Stadium. Spurs found it hard to penetrate Arsenal’s defence, and when Mauricio Pochettino subbed off Harry Kane and Dele Alli neither could feel they had been at their most influential. “The spirit was good, we were in the fight and able to develop our game with the ball in the floor. But in the final third we need more aggression and movement,” Lloris said. “Now we need to carry on. It’s true that we wanted to do more against Manchester United and Arsenal. Unfortunately we couldn’t do that so now it’s important to have a run of victories because we need to keep our place at the top.” Amy Lawrence
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